In an attempt to cut the budget, we kept the old miror and I gold leafed it myself. One sunny afternoon, I sanded it down and primed it up.

Then layer by layer I carefully painted it on.

My hunt for statement hardware finally paid off and I scored these circle ring pimping pulls from Liz's Antique Hardware in LA. At $38 a piece I am glad I only needed two of them.

The oversized brushed brass euro pulls are from Lewis Dolin at www.myknobs.com. At 10 1/2 inches long they are solid in weight and make the major statement I was hoping for. . .They were also an affordable $13.78b a pull!

Also from Lewis Dolin are the towel hooks. As part of a large sample order, I included the small cabinet pulls shown below. After an extensive search for cool ass knobs, I came up empty in the affordable style category. A big thanks to Kathy Wilder for suggesting we use three of these as towel hooks. Pretty fabulous if you ask me . . .and for $6.65 a knob. . .a major steal!

From the very beginning I was literally DYING to use this library sconce by Visual Comfort/Circa Lighting. The bathroom proved to be the perfect location.

Did you notice Jen Levine's artwork? After moving some pieces around, this room was the ideal way to showcase her original print.

Sorry for the crooked photo, I ended up having to stand on the toilet to get the shot. . . I said it was my "Almost Master Bath!"

If I missed anything or you want any more information on the bathroom or the people who helped me along the way, please post a comment or send me a message on facebook. This blog is for sharing and I would love to help!

Monday, January 21, 2013

I wrote this blog a little over a year ago but I wanted to share it with you all again. I feel lucky to be able to host a Kristin Hayes Trunk Show this February 6th. If you live in Charlotte and are interested in coming, please leave a comment and I will add you to the invite list. Go to www.kristinhayesjewelry.com to check it out!

Charlotte is home to some really cool people. Flying low, but oh so cool, is my friend and local jewelry designer Kristin Hayes. Kristin has a degree in Apparel and Textiles from Appalachian State University. After graduation, she spent time working in fashion in New York City before returning to Charlotte in 2005. She took the opportunity to follow her dreams and started her own jewelry line, Vanilla Jewelry. Since then she has added three additional line's including Emerald Hayes, Signature and Bridal.

Now just the best mommy ever to little girl Hayes, Kristin continues to challenge herself with new design concepts and customized pieces. Her home based studio is a design obsessed persons dream come true. It is literally stacked full of drawers and trays of vintage stones, pearls, brass, gold, other mixed metals and one of a kind charms. Kristin's vintage contemporary pieces are all one of a kind, and are perfect reflections of her "meticulous detail" and "craftsmanship." This month I visited her studio and worked with her to design my very own special piece.

Together we went through her many templates to find the perfect pair of crystal studded angel wings. Then we added a vintage gold cross embellished with vintage stones, a brass key (to my heart of course), and a dog tag like metal plate with stamped numbers coded with my loves birthdays.

The angel wings shown here are special for many reasons to both Kristin and myself. I am lucky enough to be the first owner of her new inspired template.The first but definitely not the last!

Along the way I fell head over heals with the chandelier earrings shown above. Because I wear a lot of mixed metals, Kristin customized them on the spot by adding a gun metal chain to the already mixed media.

Check out these divine disco diva earrings available for sale on her website for $68.

Also for sale on her website for are these vintage taglio earrings with white rhinestone chain for $88.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

I spent yesterday tying up some loose errands in Park Road Shopping Center. Trying to avoid temptations at other pricier stores in the area, I wandered into consignment store Recycle Boutique. Originally mostly consignment furniture, the owners have picked up several retail lines of furniture and lighting and offer them at discounted prices. Most recently they began offering the line Curations Limited.

The Winslow Chair is sure to be a crowd pleaser. At 41 inches in width and 43 inches deep, this chair offers the design factor and the comfort factor that so many couples battle over when it comes to furniture. Eight way spring suspension, hardwood construction and a 50/50 feather/poly foam mix make it one of the most comfortable chairs on the market. At $1,249.00 it is worth every penny. *The chair is listed online for $1707!! There is a Winslow Sofa shown online that is out of this world. I would being willing to bet that Recycle Boutique could order it for you!

I am not 100% positive that this is Curations Limited but it is available at Recycle Boutique for $489!

This is the Winslow Chair Ottoman and it could not be more comfortable. The perfect place to rest one's tired toes.

The 90 inch reproduction Chesterfield couch is probably one of my favorite couches at present. The couch is hard wood construction with Ash Wood legs, to mention the highly desirable eight way tied spring suspension. As for the comfort factor, that is thanks to the 50/50 mix of feather down and poly wrapped foam. Available in eco friendly linen with hand hammered shoe nails, the couch is available for $2,399.00 a discounted price from $3,297.00.

Back to the rain and the muck of January and praying Spring comes soon!

Recycle Boutique is located in Charlotte at Park Road Shopping Center.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

After years of planning and months of waiting, our "almost master bathroom" is finally completed. I refer to it as my "almost master bathroom" because the tiny bathroom was most recently a Jack and Jill style bathroom connecting from our master bedroom to the hallway. When we bought our home in 2006, Scott and I had major renovation plans in mind. Thanks to a long recession and a "who knew kids were this expensive" realization, our major plans have been majorly compromised. Clinging to the dream of completing the back half of our renovation, I decided to close in the wall to our room and work within the existing space constraints.

Some of you may remember the before shots seen below:

We closed in the wall to our bedroom

I worked with Interior Designer Kathy Wilder to make sure everything turned out just perfect!

Kathy created this concept board and we got right to work!

After I drove Kathy crazy with paint drama, we finally decided on Benjamin Moore's Athena from Eastway Paint. I say that because after purchasing paint from three different stores in Athena, I ended up with three totally different colors of Athena. We cut the color Athena in half for the walls and painted it in a eggshell finish. The bead board and trim are Athena in a semi gloss finish. The guys at Eastway Paint are geniuses and they literally solved all of my paint problems with almost no tears.

In the daylight it is so much whiter and brighter. . .

Than in the shadows of the evening.

With maximum storage in mind, I called on Kris at Aspen Cabinetry to custom design a vanity and storage tower. Because we live in an historic home, we chose a simple shaker style cabinet. I had to nail down the paint colors first so that I could give Kris the sample paint. He matched the paint and had it finished in the same Athena paint as the beadboard and trim. The simplicity adds the modern factor I craved, while blending seamlessly with the architecture of the home.

When they first came in I panicked that they were way too big!

But they fit just fine!

Last time I blogged on the bathroom, I was obsessed with this slab Calcutta Gold marble.

One of the lesson's I learned is that if you are only in need of a small remnant of stone, you are at the mercy of whatever remnants the fabricators have available.

Harkey Tile & Stone had this amazing remnant of White Quartzite tucked in front of a (sold) piece of Calcutta Gold. A leftover from the renovation of a very prominent Charlotte attorney, I fell in love with it's transparency (you can shine a light through it) and white/brown/gray veinning. Not to mention that it was also a total steal!

The bathroom is already done but this blog is going to take a while. Check back this week for the final blog on our "almost master bath!"

Friday, January 4, 2013

The phrase "get your priority's straight" sounds like a pretty easily accomplished task. Much like an afternoon's project or a weekend DYI. I imagine a college notebook with a couple of bullet points and some scratchy notes, maybe even an old school bubble map diagram.

In fact, "getting our priority's straight" might be the single hardest task many of us are every faced with. To some it may be as simple as going to the grocery store first and not the dry cleaners. To others it may be taking a vacation with those you love the most, taking the kids to the park instead of getting that much needed mani/pedi or clipping coupons today so that next month there is a little something, something in the old savings account. The scenarios are endless, but the various outcomes ultimately form the foundation of our lives.

For the last several weeks, I have worked hard on my own bubble map of life. Clarity comes at the center of that bubble, in BIG, BOLD ink. The only way this map works is to put our children front and center. Not just yours and mine, but our neighbors, our cities and ultimately the worlds. There are lines that lead everywhere with more and more bubbles attached. Everything from listening to them more often, to spending time indoors reading and outdoors exercising with them. We must prepare them for the world outside our nest and we have to save for their future and ours. Prioritizing all of that (and more) is going to take some time, but the easiest and funnest part is spending time with them. What better time to catch up on some much needed kid loving than over the holidays!

Here is a look at some fun moments from our holiday season:

Elfie came extra early this year and made a lot of work for Mommy and Daddy. That (not) so little elf has never fit on any of our shelves. Sure does make himself comfortable in our kitchen though. . .

Sadie bug just could not deside on a tree. . .

She finally did. . .and it was the best, tree, ever!

Just to be sure there was a enough help at the North Pole, Cooper added some SUPER powers to Santa's team.

Elfie got in MORE & MORE trouble around the house and was almost sent back to the North Pole.

The best Christmas present ever was bringing him home from the hospital on Christmas Eve 2008.

Happy 4th Birthday Super Cooper!

We had a "girls day" at the Nutcracker with some of our best friends.

And thanks to some great planning from Ms. Krista Wilson. . .

We were second row, center stage!

Most importantly, we did a lot of sitting around and making S'Mores by the fire!